Arizona Estate Planning Laws

Hi, I’m Beth Cohn. I’m an attorney at Jaburg Wilk and I work in the area of estate planning.

What is an Irrevocable Trust

An irrevocable trust is a trust that cannot be changed. Many times, people will use an irrevocable trust when they want to make gifts to their children or their grandchildren and they don’t want them to get the benefits from those trusts right away.

Amending Irrevocable Trusts in Arizona

There are a couple of options under Arizona law and one of them is having to go to court. We have a new set of statutes in Arizona, under our Arizona Trust Code, that give us guidelines of when we have to go to court in order to request court approval to make changes to irrevocable trusts. But there’s also some more flexibility that’s been given to trustees to make some changes if the provisions and the trusts allow it.

Provisions That Allow Changes to be Made

There’s a provision that’s called decanting and decanting is available for certain trusts. Usually, there’s something in that trust that someone doesn’t like. And what they do, literally, is they create a new trust and they pour those assets from the old trust into the new trust. So decanting is a technique that allows a trustee to make that decision and to transfer assets from the old broken trust to a new fixed trust. There’s some other requirements that are more technical, but it gives the trustee a lot of power if the trustee has certain discretion in the trust.

Do I Need an Attorney to Make a Trust

Well, I think there’s always a benefit. Unfortunately, I’ve seen some of the worst cases when people have grabbed forms and tried to do estate plans themselves. Whether the estate is smaller or larger, estate planning is very technical and there’s rules that we have to comply with. So I advise anybody who needs to have an estate plan done, to see an attorney.

By: Beth Cohn

Guardianship in Scottsdale, Arizona

I want to speak to you today regarding what a guardianship is with respect to estate planning in the state of Arizona. A guardianship consists of a court appointment of a person or entity to care for or make personal decisions for a child who is younger than 18 years of age, or an adult who is incapacitated, or otherwise unable to care for themselves, due to a mental or physical disability.

The Ward & Guardian

The person for whom a guardian is appointed is referred to as the ward. Any person, subject to court approval, may be appointed by the court to accept the responsibility of being a guardian for a ward. With respect to minor children, the court’s decision regarding who to appoint as a child’s guardian will be based upon what the court finds to be in the best interest of that child.

Any individual seeking to be appointed a guardian of a ward must disclose background information, including prior criminal convictions, as well as other information the court may request before appointing that guardian. Please feel free to contact the attorneys at Hildebrand Law if you have any questions regarding the appointment of a guardian in your case.

By: Chris Hildebrand

About Chris Hildebrand

I’m Chris Hildebrand. I’m an attorney and the founder of Hildebrand Law. I’ve been practicing for almost twenty years. I enjoy estate planning because it gives me the ability to work closely with my clients, come up with solutions, not only solutions in terms of protecting their assets and the debts while they’re alive, but also to provide for their heirs and make sure that they are comfortable knowing that the people they care most about are protected. It also gives me the opportunity to create real relationships with people, real friendships and I find that really fascinating and interesting.

Scottsdale Estate Planning

I really enjoy that part of the practice. I think a lot of people’s fear with regards to addressing estate planning issues or meeting with an estate planning attorney is you’re inherently talking about a subject that people are uncomfortable with, which is their potential death and their assets and how much they have and how many debts they have. Clients invariably leave after the estate planning process is complete and they’re very relieved because they now know that what is important to them is protected. I think they really leave feeling empowered because of the decisions they’ve made going forward. It really forces us to look at their family as a whole and come up with a life plan for them so that they can achieve the desires or the wants or the things that they want to do both short term, now, as well as long term when they retire.

If you have any questions about estate planning or want to know more about the estate planning process, feel free to email me and I’d be happy to answer any questions you may have.

By: Chris Hildebrand

In the event that a person does not create an estate plan and nominate someone to take over his or her finances, and that person later becomes unable to manage their financial affairs, the state of Arizona has setup what is called a conservatorship. A conservatorship is a legal court proceeding for the person that is going to take over your finances must file a petition with the court to apply and qualify to become your conservator. If the court approves the person to become your conservator, the court will then issue an order granting that person the legal authority to transact business on your behalf, including your financial accounts, real estate, and motor vehicles. When someone is appointed by the court as a conservator, he or she must account to the court for the money that is spent on your behalf each year. What that means is, the conservator has to prepare and file an annual accounting and submit it to the court. It is then reviewed by the court accountant and either approved, or the court accountant can ask for further clarification. And, with each annual accounting, there is a filing fee that must be paid to the court to have the court accountant review the accounting. There is a very easy way to avoid all of this. All you have to do is contact Owens & Perkins to create an estate plan before you actually need it. Included in every estate plan is a financial power of attorney, where you get to select the individual or trust company that will manage your money if you become unable. If you would like to schedule a consultation to discuss either filing for a conservatorship, or to create your own estate plan, please call us at Owens & Perkins at (480) 994-8824.

If you are seeking a Conservatorship in Arizona, please visit this profile and submit a contact form.

By: Attorney Michelle Perkins

Probate is the legal process that confirms who is entitled to your property when you die and provides someone with the authority to transfer real estate, bank accounts, investments, and any other property you own that requires proof of ownership before it can be transferred. You can avoid probate if all of your important assets pass by operation of law. Property can pass by operation of law in one of the following six ways: beneficiary designations for retirement accounts, life insurance, and annuities, two, joint bank accounts, three, rights of survivorship and real property, four, other contractual rights, five, POD or TOD designations on bank or investment accounts, and six, beneficiary deeds for real property. You can also avoid probate, but not administration of your assets if you have a living trust. Whether avoiding probate or administration is a good idea depends on your particular circumstances. I’m Mark Bregman. Contact me at (480) 945-9131 to find out how I can use my knowledge and experience to help you choose the best estate plan.

By: Attorney Mark Bregman

Hello, I’m Mark Bregman, an Arizona estate planning and probate attorney since 1979. Clients hire me because I provide them with a high degree of comfort by explaining the different ways they can plan an estate, and then following through by creating a comprehensive plan using documents that help them avoid a guardianship, conservatorship, and probate, and the advice appropriate to help them and their loved ones achieve their expectations. I stay in contact with my clients and make sure their plans will be effective when most needed. This is the most popular reason clients hire me. What differentiates me from other attorneys is that I have spent many years developing and updating the provisions I use in creating trusts, wills, powers of attorney, and living wills designed to provide maximum protection for my clients, their families, and their hard earned wealth. I listen to my clients and convey difficult, non-intuitive concepts in a way that is easily understood. I begin by collecting information that induces prospective clients to think about what is important to them so that when we meet, I can listen to them tell me about themselves, their values, their families, and their intentions. I recognize that their wealth is also important to clients with little money. Every family has issues that should be discussed so that the client can choose his or her own way of dealing with their own family dynamics I can provide inexpensive and easy solutions using beneficiary deeds, POD accounts, and beneficiary designations to pass assets without using a trust or a probate, if it’s not necessary. Most of my clients are referred by financial advisors and satisfied clients who already trust me. I asked my clients to put aside their pre-conceived ideas of what they want and instead, focus on whether they like me. Not all lawyers are for all clients. I can’t write poetry or solve quadratic equations and I certainly can’t do the work most of my clients do, but I can create great estate plans. If you would like to work with me and my team, please give me a call at (480) 945-9131.

By: Attorney Mark Bregman

In the event a person does not create an estate plan and nominates someone to make decisions regarding their housing, living situation, and health care, the state of Arizona has setup what is called a guardianship. A guardianship is a legal court proceeding where the person that is going to take over has to go down and file a petition with the court to obtain the legal authority to make these types of decisions for you. If the court approves the person that is applying to become your guardian, the court will issue an order granting them that authority. Many times, particularly if you have more than one child, a guardianship proceeding can become a contested matter because your children may each have their own idea of what is best for you in your later years. Unfortunately, these types of contested proceedings can cause family fights that ruin relationships and cause damage that never gets repaired. But, there is an easy way to avoid putting your family through all of this. If you have created your own estate plan, in that plan there will be a health care power of attorney that allows you to nominate who you want to make these decisions for you in the event that there is ever a time when you are unable. At Owens & Perkins, we strive to keep families together. Let us help you by preparing your estate plan so that you get to make your own decisions and have those decisions carried out. Id you would like to schedule a consultation to create, revise, or update an estate plan, or discuss the possible filing of a guardianship, please contact us at Owens & Perkins at (480) 994-8824.

If you are seeking a Guardianship in Arizona, please view this profile and submit a contact form.

By: Attorney Michelle Perkins

Medical Power of Attorney

I want to speak to you today regarding what a medical power of attorney is in the state of Arizona. A medical power of attorney is a legal document allowing a person to designate another person to make medical decisions on their behalf in the event they are incapacitated and unable to make those decisions for themselves.

Duration

A medical power of attorney is effective until it is subsequently revoked, upon any expiration date set forth in the document, or upon the person’s recovery from the condition that rendered him or her unable to make their own medical decisions. The patient’s physician makes a determination whether a person is or is not incapacitated for the purpose of determining if the patient or the person designated in the health care power of attorney will be authorized to make medical decisions.

Please feel free to contact the attorneys at Hildebrand Law if you have any other questions regarding a medical power of attorney in Arizona.

By: Chris Hildebrand

Typical estate planning documents include a living trust, a pour-over will, a living will, and powers of attorney for financial, health care, and mental health care decision-making. Tax planning, if needed, may include irrevocable trusts and asset protection may include LLCs, trusts, and careful planning. I’m Mark Bregman. Contact me at (480) 945-9131 to find out more about creating your own effective and affordable estate plan.

By: Attorney Mark Bregman